US imposes sanctions on 4 al-Qaida, Taliban leaders

Admin l Friday, December 2, 2022

 

WASHINGTON – The United States has imposed sanctions on leaders of  al-Qaida and Tehrik-e Taliban Pakistan (TTP) as part of its commitment  to using its full set of counterterrorism tools to counter the threat posed by terrorist groups operating in Afghanistan, including al-Qa’ida in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) and Tehrik-e Taliban Pakistan (TTP).

In a statement, Secretary of State, Antony Blinken said the sanction is part of its relentless efforts to ensure that terrorists do not use Afghanistan as a platform for international terrorism.

Those affected are Osama Mehmood, who is the emir of AQIS, Atif Yahya Ghouri,  the deputy emir of AQIS and Muhammad Maruf, who is responsible for AQIS’ recruiting branch and Qari Amjad, who is the deputy emir of TTP. He oversees operations and militants in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province.

They were all designated as Specially Designated Global Terrorists (SDGTs) under Executive Order (E.O.) 13224, as amended, for their leadership roles in their respective groups:

“As a result of these actions, all property and interests in property of those designated yesterday that are subject to U.S. jurisdiction are blocked, and all U.S. persons are generally prohibited from engaging in any transactions with them”, the department said.

He said these actions again demonstrate that  the US will continue to use all relevant tools to uphold its commitment to see to it that international terrorists are not able to operate with impunity in Afghanistan.